Writing Excuses 10.37: Being a Good Panelist and a Great Moderator, with Susan J. Morris and Marc Ta

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Writing Excuses 10.37: Being a Good Panelist and a Great Moderator, with Susan J. Morris and Marc Tassin

From http://www.writingexcuses.com/2015/09/13/writing-excuses-10-37-being-a-good-panelist-and-a-great-moderator-with-susan-j-morris-and-marc-tassin/

Key Points: You aren't the only panelist, work with the others to make it a great experience for the audience. Concise, considerate, and topically relevant. People remember soundbites! To be effective, plan ahead! Research, write it out, and practice. How do you get on a panel and stay on panels? Be good at something, be able to share what you know, be able to connect with strangers. The best panelists engage in conversation instead of just waiting to talk. Pay attention to the audience, the panelists, and the moderator. Moderators make the panelists shine, not themselves. Moderators should prepare, too! Know the dead spaces in the topic, know the panel and the audience. To identify the dead spaces, prepare, make notes, try questions, rehearse, and make sure this panel talks about what the audience wants to hear. You don't have to cover everything. Do set expectations from the beginning. And have a great time at Bob Con!
( A panel of experts and one moderator... )

[Dan] It's our delight to have you here. Now. I believe Marc is going to give us... Send us home with a writing prompt.
[Marc] You've been invited, as an author, to attend Bob Con. All expenses paid. You arrive at Bob's house, and realize why it's called Bob Con. How do you get out of it, and how does our hero escape?
[Laughter, applause]
[Dan] Well, you are out of excuses.
[Laughter]
[Dan] So, go write.